Outrage at rape report

A charity campaigning for women's rights has today described the treatment of sexual assault victims as a "national disgrace" after a report said police and prosecutors were failing to implement measures designed to increase the rape conviction rate.

A charity campaigning for women's rights has today described the treatment of sexual assault victims as a "national disgrace" after a report said police and prosecutors were failing to implement measures designed to increase the rape conviction rate.

The Fawcett Society claims more than 50,000 women a year are raped. Just over 13,000 complaints are received by police with convictions in only 5.31% of cases.

Ministers have been attempting to increase the low conviction rate for rape. The report showed varied detection rates in different police forces, from 22% to 93%.

Dr Katherine Rake, director of the Fawcett Society, said this amounted to a postcode lottery and was a national disgrace. "Police and prosecutors' attitudes towards victims must also be tackled so that the criminal justice system is sensitive to the needs of victims and rapists do not go unpunished."